We (Cassie and Kendra) just got back from the North American Livestock Show and Rodeo Managers’ Association Annual Meeting in Shreveport, LA, and we had a blast! Of course, we learned how to host a stellar rodeo and livestock show, but these folks sure knew how to have a good time while we learned.
Louisiana has a ton to offer and we took full advantage of the culture, food and warm weather.
One of our first stops was Alligator Park, where we saw, you guessed it, a ton of alligators!
We even saw the house where the wedding from Steel Magnolias was filmed!
Then in the evening, we spent a little time drinking mint juleps on the porch and having delicious BBQ at a fabulous plantation.
We also took a trip to the country and saw the fantastic LSU Ag Research Center, where we took a hayride to visit some cows. They were also growing some amazing-looking tomatoes in a greenhouse. These were honestly the biggest tomato plants I’ve ever seen. So delicious!
We had the change to hear from a great speaker named Teresa Allen, who kicked her presentation off with a Mardi Gras style entrance by the officers, who threw beads to get the crowd going.
Our visit to the Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City was incredible. We saw some awesome planes and got a tour from a retired Air Force vet. It was such a treat so close to Memorial Day!
We got to eat crawfish at the LA Exhibit Museum, where Jarrod from HOT Fair and Karla from State Fair of Texas showed us how it’s done.
To cap off our trip, we went to Mudbug Madness, Shreveport’s biggest crawfish festival! The festival hung a sign to welcome our group, and Cassie made sure everyone was using their new Saffire koozies!
A special thanks to the staff and volunteers at The State Fair of Louisiana for showing us around your great state. We had such a fantastic time at the NALS&RMA Annual Meeting, and we can’t wait until next year!